Tuesday, January 27, 2015

As with yesterday's postings, I'm playing catch-up and wanted to update some earlier posts with new designs. These mirrors have been a Pinterest hit for me, so I made some more for this year's dance team competition gift table. Instead of individually gluing the bling-y letters, I used my Cricut cutting machine to make vinyl lettering. Much faster and equally as cute! But, of course, I couldn't leave off the bling entirely so it's still on the handle ;)Reflect (get it?) on these cuties...and customize for your own needs! Case in point, my sister-in-law made some for her daughter's Barbie birthday, so the possibilities are endless. And, since the mirrors are from the Dollar Tree, they are the perfect low cost favor gift.Here's lookin' at you...

Monday, January 26, 2015

If you've read my blog, you know I'm a bit of a dance mom...not the "Dance Moms" style dance mom...I'm nice. So, I love to spoil the girls on my oldest daughter's team with fun little treats at each competition. Here's a bunch of the favors I've made over the last couple years that I thought I'd share, many from themed football game performances or state routines. (All are made very inexpensively with Dollar Store finds, candy and a little computer graphic design work.) I'll continue to add photos of my latest projects to this post, so be sure to check back often! Spoil someone you love, because sometimes the little things make the biggest memories!

I made this beautiful, glittery box for my oldest daughter's dance team state theme reveal party but I'm sure you can imagine many uses for it. I wish I had taken some photos while assembling it, but it's so easy I know you can just go for it. It all started with a glittering, in this case gold, photo storage box purchased at JoAnn's. I think these may be a special item only out around the holidays, because I haven't seen them again. Never mind, I found them by the card making supplies in four glittering options! But, you could easily cover any box with glitter paper or glitter it yourself using a decoupage glue. As for the ribbon, the super wide navy ribbon is simply blanket binding I ironed flat. Next came a narrower, light blue ribbon. I used a glue gun to adhere the ribbon to the inside of the box, bottom half first. Be sure to use a ruler to center the ribbons perfectly. For the top of the box, the 'stripes' of ribbon were left a bit loose when gluing so that I could gather it in the center with a piece of 1/8" ribbon. I then made the large cheer-style bow, again tightly securing with the 1/8" ribbon and layered on a smaller pinwheel-style bow. I added a dab of hot glue to the underside of the bow centerpiece for stability. I finished the whole thing off with some gold bells, as the team name is "The Belles", but you could customize it at this point to fit your needs. I think that "Wraps it up"! (Sorry, I couldn't resist.)

Thought I'd share some more cards designs from a post made last year. I make them to sell at my daughter's dance team competition gift table, but you could make one just for that special dancer in your life. Customize it to look like their competition costume and you've got a keepsake to cherish! Sparkle on!

Looking for a practical and personal gift for the dancer in your life, without spending an arm and a leg? Well...I should restate that, it's inexpensive if you already own a cutting machine! If not, maybe someone you know owns one you can use. I recently was given a Cricut Explore, and I love it for the most part (but I must admit that a small part of me hates how the company nickel and dimes you for every accessory, font, cut file or product material!) But I digress! Back to the cute blankets...The first step is prepping your fleece. I've made them using both fleece yardage and store bought finished blankets. The choice is yours. I'm not a huge fan of all the fringe hanging around the edges, but lots of kids love to tie the knots. Again, choice is yours, but I just sewed a traditional seam around the border with right sides together, leaving an opening to turn it right side out. After closing the hole with some quick hand stitching, I topstitched the seam with a large, wide zig-zag stitch.

Iron-on Vinyl on Satin

Next, you're ready to personalize. Now, I made these as blankets to take to competitions (think cold, early morning bus rides), so I positioned the personalization so that it could be wrapped around the body while walking and read at about knee level. In other words, I turned the blanket sideways and put the lettering on the lower right side when you're looking at it. The first two blankets I made were for my own daughters, so I used my Cricut to cut the lettering from iron-on vinyl and pressed it to coordinating satin that was backed with interfacing. The later ones I've made, I decided to skip the vinyl stage and just make the satin stiff enough to cut with Heat Bond Ultra-hold. In both cases, I finished the edges with zig-zag stitches. One of these, I layered the satin so there was no need to stitch around the letters. But, on some I was making to sell at our competition gift table, I used just one layer of satin and used the negative space of my Cricut cut which made a cool raised effect when stitched. Variety is the spice of life, so have fun experimenting with the technique you like best! But, two words to the wise, do not try stitching around single small letters on fleece and be sure to use a pressing cloth over the fleece or...you'll be sorry!I know your dancer would love one, and with so many printed fleece patterns out there you're sure to find one in their team colors! Happy sewing!